Feature Image Credit Shannon Shumaker
FRANK TURNER teams up with TEENAGE JOANS on new rendition of
‘GIRL FROM THE RECORD SHOP’.
New album ‘UNDEFEATED’ to be released on May 3rd via Xtra Mile Recordings
UK legend Frank Turner has today released a version of his recent single ‘Girl From The Record Shop’, this time with a helping hand from Australian punk-duo Teenage Joans. The original single, which dropped in late february this year, was the third to be released from Frank’s upcoming tenth studio album titled ‘Undefeated’, which is out May 3rd via Xtra Mile Recordings.
‘Girl From The Record Shop’ was already full to the brim with fast-paced, classic punk energy to begin with – and with the addition of the Joans, the track has been taken to a whole new level. Teenage Joans have become one of Frank’s favourite bands in recent years, and he was thrilled to have the young Adelaide duo join him on the track.
“I’m beyond stoked to be collaborating with Teenage Joans – one of my favourite new(er) bands in the world. And they really brought the fire to this, they’ve turned the lyric around and made me laugh and dance at the same time, to my own song.” – FRANK TURNER
The Teenage Joans have had some huge career moments over the past 12 months; releasing their debut album in 2023, touring the US for the first time, supporting the Foo Fighters on their most recent Australian Tour and performing on triple J’s Like A Version just under a month ago. Their duet with Frank on ‘Girl From The Record Shop’ comes as the band are at the peak of their powers – a perfect pairing between a legend of the genre and the exciting up-and-comers.
“We were SO excited when Frank asked us to jump on this song – it’s punk and it’s punchy, and Tahlia literally works at a record shop… it’s the perfect vibe for us!” – TEENAGE JOANS
“Now I’m surprised to report that as I enter my forties, I’ve returned to being an angry man,” he sings on the recent track ‘No Thank You For The Music’. And that’s a concise statement as to what to expect from ‘Undefeated’, Frank’s follow-up to his first UK #1 album, 2022’s ‘FTHC’. Finding the sweet spot between youthful outspokenness and surviving midlife’s challenges, it’s a record that explores both emotionally compelling topics and lighter reflections on those troubles that eventually come to most of us. Who you are versus who you wanted to be in your youth; life-altering love; fading friendships; wistful nostalgia; the mental fallout and political consequences that still linger from the pandemic era; and the more prosaic issue of persistent backache.
Frank says,“There are no clichés about the difficult 10th album, so in some ways, that’s a liberating statement. But at the same time, I have a duty to justify writing and releasing a 10th album. That’s a lot of records for anybody. Also, I’m 42. Which is not a sexy, rock’n’roll age. But all through my career, I’ve been interested in writers like Loudon Wainwright III or The Hold Steady, people who write about adulthood, essentially.”
While thematically ‘Undefeated’ is informed by this time in life, sonically it’s full of echoes to influences that Frank has touched upon at various moments in his kaleidoscopic career. It switches from Black Flag to Counting Crows, from Descendents to The Pogues, via Elvis Costello and Billy Bragg. Its freewheeling nature is reflective not only of his new-found independence, but also of the creative environment he found himself in. As usual, it was entirely written by himself, but this is the first album that he produced himself, recorded in the home studio that he and his wife, Jessica Guise, share on Mersea Island, Essex. It features his live band: Ben Lloyd (guitar), Tarrant Anderson (bass), Callum Green (drums) and Matt Nasir (piano).
The release of ‘Undefeated’ will of course see this punk-rock road-warrior tour with the tenacity and intense schedules that he’s renowned for (such as the sprawling 50 States in 50 Days North American tour) but with even bigger ambitions that will be revealed in due course as he nears his 3000th (!) gig. But for now, anticipate the new album: a typically energising, literate, playful and provocative set from a musician who remains ‘Undefeated’ after a quarter-of-a-century in the game.
UNDEFEATED
1.‘Do One’
2. ‘Never Mind The Back Problems’
3. ‘Ceasefire’
4. ‘Girl From The Record Shop’
5. ‘Pandemic PTSD’
6. ‘Letters’
7. ‘East Finchley’
8. ‘No Thank You For The Music’
9. ‘The Leaders’
10. ‘International Hide and Seek Champions’
11. ‘Show People’
12. ‘On My Way’
13. ‘Somewhere Inbetween’
14. ‘Undefeated’
PRAISE FOR FRANK TURNER
“Frank Turner goes back to hardcore and a whole lot more on superb ninth album, FTHC.” – KERRANG!
“Incredibly powerful” – NPR MUSIC
“Who better than Frank Turner to underscore the imminent joy of reconnecting with others? Generally, this sort of earnestness can be wearying, but Turner succeeds because he sounds
like he’s just stomped out of a stuffy meeting to go yell on a street corner, frantic with Euphoria.” – THE NEW YORK TIMES
“‘The Gathering’ is appropriately arena-sized from the start as Turner bellows over booming drums and towering glam rock riffs. The track ends with Isbell unleashing the mightiest guitar
solo he can muster.” – ROLLING STONE (US)
“Stepping away from the more folk sounds of his last few albums, Frank and his band bring back the fast-paced punk tunes that make you want to stand on a table and sing along.” –
PEOPLE MAGAZINE
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Photographer and Editor/Founder of AllMusicMagazine.com. My love of live music has taken me to incredible experiences with the top bands of all time in stadium shows to the smallest venues with equally inspiring musicians. Using the medium of photography and my publication, these memories will last forever.
